A Day I Will Never Forget
We were up at 6:00am packing the van with sacks full of rice and mosquito nets to bring to a remote village still unreached by relief workers; a village where my hosts, Moses and Samantha, (an amazing Cambodian Pastor and his wife) were hoping to plant a church (they have already planted about 500 churches throughout rural Cambodia!).
Four hours later we pulled into the village where people had been waiting since sun-up. Word had gotten to them that help was coming that day and they walked for miles hoping to receive food for their starving families. Before I knew it, Moses had all the adults sitting down so he could share the message of God's hope with them and directed me to entertain the 40 kids while he did so. Not knowing more than a couple phrases in Khmer (the national language), I was so thankful when Samantha came over to help translate for me.
"What should I do with them?" I asked her. "Teach them Jesus Loves Me," she replied. Ok, I thought. I can do that. And thus started a fun repeating game as I said a word from the song and the kids tried hard to say it after me. After they could successfully say the first line, "Jesus loves me," I asked Samantha to translate it for them in Khmer. She just looked at me and said, "But they have no idea who Jesus is - they've never even heard that name before." I was speechless for a minute. I knew that there were lots of places in the world where people had never heard the name Jesus, but I had never been in one before. Yes, I've been around people who don't know Jesus or anything about Him, but at least they had heard the name before.
Samantha just encouraged me to continue teaching the song. I obliged, still in shock, and got to the line that says, "for the Bible tells me so." I asked her, "Have they ever heard of the Bible?" "No," she replied, "They've never heard of it." Again, I found myself struggling to take in this information. Sure there are lots of people who have never read the Bible and don't know what it's about, but these kids didn't even know such a book existed.
At that point, I stopped the song and asked Samantha and the kids if I could tell them a story instead to help them understand the song. They all nodded enthusiastically. "Ok," I said, "This story started a long, long time ago back at the very beginning of the world. Does anyone here know who created the world?" "No," they all said with wide eyes, "Will you tell us?" Tears filled my eyes and I struggled to continue. I guess I assumed they would have some belief about how the world was formed, but all that met me were curious little faces, eager to hear where everything in this world, including them, came from. Wow, where do I even begin? I wondered. I felt completely inadequate and humbled to be the one sharing the truth about our Creator and Savior with them for the first time, but did my best to fight the tears and begin the story.
I really have no idea how much they understood of what I shared that afternoon. From creation, to Adam and Eve, to Heaven and Hell, to Jesus and his death on the cross, I'm not sure what made sense or tied together for them. But I did my best, and my interpreter did her best (I don't think she always understood me, but we tried J). I do know that at least these kids have now been introduced to the person of Jesus and the God who created them. And I pray that Moses communicated the message well to their parents who can then explain more to them at home. And I rejoice knowing that plans are in motion to start a church in this small village where people can come to learn more about this God who is deeply in love with them.
I don't know how to describe the emotions swirling in my heart as we left the village that day: a strange mixture of sadness, joy, urgency, and calling. So much of this world is in desperate need of good news – news that we have, but keep to ourselves. They are hungry for God, for Truth, and for Hope; and He is even more hungry for them - for a relationship with them. And He's asked us, His church, to go and take the Good News to every corner of the world. When will we take him seriously and finish this task He's given us? People are waiting. Jesus is waiting.
I sense that this type of ministry is what God is calling me to next. I'm not exactly sure the details of where, when, or how, but I'm seeking God's guidance in all these areas. I'm excited to see where He leads. One thing I know: even though my experiences in Thailand and Cambodia were amazing, I definitely realized that my heart is in Africa. I felt so homesick for Africa the entire time and really feel that's where I belong for now.
Here is a picture of some of a baptism that Moses did in the village. About 60 people were baptized that day. Praise God!
Four hours later we pulled into the village where people had been waiting since sun-up. Word had gotten to them that help was coming that day and they walked for miles hoping to receive food for their starving families. Before I knew it, Moses had all the adults sitting down so he could share the message of God's hope with them and directed me to entertain the 40 kids while he did so. Not knowing more than a couple phrases in Khmer (the national language), I was so thankful when Samantha came over to help translate for me.
"What should I do with them?" I asked her. "Teach them Jesus Loves Me," she replied. Ok, I thought. I can do that. And thus started a fun repeating game as I said a word from the song and the kids tried hard to say it after me. After they could successfully say the first line, "Jesus loves me," I asked Samantha to translate it for them in Khmer. She just looked at me and said, "But they have no idea who Jesus is - they've never even heard that name before." I was speechless for a minute. I knew that there were lots of places in the world where people had never heard the name Jesus, but I had never been in one before. Yes, I've been around people who don't know Jesus or anything about Him, but at least they had heard the name before.
Samantha just encouraged me to continue teaching the song. I obliged, still in shock, and got to the line that says, "for the Bible tells me so." I asked her, "Have they ever heard of the Bible?" "No," she replied, "They've never heard of it." Again, I found myself struggling to take in this information. Sure there are lots of people who have never read the Bible and don't know what it's about, but these kids didn't even know such a book existed.
At that point, I stopped the song and asked Samantha and the kids if I could tell them a story instead to help them understand the song. They all nodded enthusiastically. "Ok," I said, "This story started a long, long time ago back at the very beginning of the world. Does anyone here know who created the world?" "No," they all said with wide eyes, "Will you tell us?" Tears filled my eyes and I struggled to continue. I guess I assumed they would have some belief about how the world was formed, but all that met me were curious little faces, eager to hear where everything in this world, including them, came from. Wow, where do I even begin? I wondered. I felt completely inadequate and humbled to be the one sharing the truth about our Creator and Savior with them for the first time, but did my best to fight the tears and begin the story.
I really have no idea how much they understood of what I shared that afternoon. From creation, to Adam and Eve, to Heaven and Hell, to Jesus and his death on the cross, I'm not sure what made sense or tied together for them. But I did my best, and my interpreter did her best (I don't think she always understood me, but we tried J). I do know that at least these kids have now been introduced to the person of Jesus and the God who created them. And I pray that Moses communicated the message well to their parents who can then explain more to them at home. And I rejoice knowing that plans are in motion to start a church in this small village where people can come to learn more about this God who is deeply in love with them.
I don't know how to describe the emotions swirling in my heart as we left the village that day: a strange mixture of sadness, joy, urgency, and calling. So much of this world is in desperate need of good news – news that we have, but keep to ourselves. They are hungry for God, for Truth, and for Hope; and He is even more hungry for them - for a relationship with them. And He's asked us, His church, to go and take the Good News to every corner of the world. When will we take him seriously and finish this task He's given us? People are waiting. Jesus is waiting.
I sense that this type of ministry is what God is calling me to next. I'm not exactly sure the details of where, when, or how, but I'm seeking God's guidance in all these areas. I'm excited to see where He leads. One thing I know: even though my experiences in Thailand and Cambodia were amazing, I definitely realized that my heart is in Africa. I felt so homesick for Africa the entire time and really feel that's where I belong for now.
Here is a picture of some of a baptism that Moses did in the village. About 60 people were baptized that day. Praise God!
posted by Kierra Higgins at 9:26 PM
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